California TransiT assoCiaTion

2012 – 2016

STRATEGIC PLAN

Contents

3 Strategic Goals Statements

4 Strategic Goal 1 – Advocacy

7 Strategic Goal 2 – Member Services

10 Strategic Goal 3 – Organizational Management and Development

13 Implementation of the Strategic Plan and Timeline

13 Process for Periodic Review and Update

14 Beyond the Plan

15 Towards a New Plan

16 Acknowledgements

About the Plan

The individual members of our California Transit Association focus on moving people from where they are to where they need and choose to be. And our California Transit Association focuses on the same concept on a different scale. Our members have spoken loudly from throughout our ranks that the California Transit Association shall support their work to bring fully funded, efficient and effective public transit systems to all California citizens.

The following pages reflect the role of the California Transit Association to help produce that vision. This is the second iteration of a planning process that began in 2005 – an evolutionary step in the Association’s work to reflect the collective vision of its members from a statewide perspective.

California’s economic vitality and social strength depend on the ability of all our citizens to move freely and easily within and between our growing and increasingly congested communities. For the California Transit Association’s members, that means a strategy ensuring our transit networks can operate in the most beneficial legal and regulatory environment. Therefore, our Strategic Plan makes strategic advocacy its top priority, with an added emphasis on provision of adequate financial resources for our state’s public transit services.

Right behind the primary focus of advocacy, our members want information and services to help improve the effectiveness of their own organizations. The Strategic Plan continues the California Transit Association’s rich history of member participation to develop mutually beneficial conferences, committees, work groups, training sessions, and other forums. Our members, our leadership, and our Association staff will work together to communicate, share information, build consensus, innovate, and develop Association policy.

Finally, the California Transit Association’s management functions will share the high standards that each of our members cherish within their own organizations. These include a healthy participatory constituency, well represented governance, accountability, and sustainability.

By developing this new comprehensive Strategic Plan for the California Transit Association, all of our members have come together to strengthen public transit services for all of California’s citizens. And they share the vision that the plan on the following few pages is essential to the successful development of a healthy, effective, and vibrant public transit presence throughout California.

The vision is essential

to the successful

development of a

healthy, effective, and

vibrant public transit

presence throughout

California.

STRATEGIC PLAN 1

VISIoN Fully Funded, eFFiCienT, And eFFeCTive PuBliC TRAnSiT SySTemS OPeRATing in A BAlAnCed TRAnSPORTATiOn neTwORk. MISSIoN SuPPORT The needS OF CAliFORniA’S PuBliC TRAnSiT SySTemS ThROugh AdvOCACy And eduCATiOn. CoRE VALuES eThiCAl BehAviOR • hOneSTy • inTegRiTy • ACCOunTABiliTy • SeRviCe TO The PuBliC • inFORmed PARTiCiPATiOn • COnSenSuS-BASed deCiSiOn mAking & inCluSiveneSS

Strategic goals Statements

Below are the three strategic goals the California Transit Association will pursue over the next five years.

The following pages contain the objectives that must be met – expressed in terms of outcomes and indicators – in order to determine the success of the Strategic Plan in achieving these three goals, and display a menu of tactics for each strategic goal from which the executive Committee and staff will choose for implementation in each year’s work

program and budget.

Strategic goal 2 MeMber ServiceS

Provide members timely information

and services to enhance the

strengths and effectiveness of

their organizations.

Strategic goal 3 organizational ManageMent & DevelopMent

Increase the Association’s ability to

achieve its goals by aligning financial

resources, staff expertise, work

program, member participation,

and governance process.

STRATEGIC PLAN 3

Strategic goal 1 aDvocacy

Influence decision makers to enact

policies and supply funds supporting

and advancing public transit.

AdvOCACyInfluence decision makers to enact policies and supply funds

supporting and advancing public transit.

4 CAliFORniA TRAnSiT ASSOCiATiOn4 CAliFORniA TRAnSiT ASSOCiATiOn

STRATEGIC GoAL 1

objectivesA. outcoMe

existing transit funds are protected.

inDicatorS

1. no existing transit funds, including TdA, PTA, STA, or Proposition 1A or 1B funds, are eliminated, terminated, shifted or otherwise used for non-transit purposes, without specific repayment terms.

2. All previous loans or shifts of transit funds are paid back to the appropriate account from which the funds were taken, plus interest.

B. outcoMe

new transit funds are secured.

inDicator

1. New sources of sustainable transit funding are enacted to meet the needs identified by the Association.

C. outcoMe

laws and regulations that support transit are enacted and those that impede transit’s ability to meet the public’s mobility needs are defeated.

inDicatorS

1. Sponsored bills and policies contained in the Association’s annual State and Federal legislative Programs are enacted.

2. All high-priority opposed bills are defeated.

Menu of Tactics1. Annually develop and adopt State and Federal legislative programs based on the objectives listed above, that identify

and respond to mid-to-long-term legislative or regulatory threats to and opportunities for public transit, such as passage of Propositions 26 and 22 or the state’s move towards devolving responsibility to the local level, and also including general policies to be supported or opposed and specific legislative or regulatory goals for sponsorship.

2. Lobby in support of or against legislation, regulations and budget and policy developments identified in the State or Federal legislative programs, as appropriate, and enlist the similar efforts of members of the Association where necessary.

3. Monitor, analyze and report to members on all bills, regulations, and budget or policy developments that do or could affect public transit.

4. Develop and improve relationships with key legislators, staff and administration officials.

5. Continually educate legislators, staff, administration and regulatory agency officials about public transit, with an emphasis on how funding works and transit’s sustainable funding needs.

Strategic goal 1

aDvocacy

STRATEGIC PLAN 5

6. Conduct ongoing research into and assessment of transit’s unfunded needs for increased and sustainable operations and maintenance, as well as capital funding, to preserve the current system and expand the system to achieve local, regional and state policy goals.

7. Identify and advocate for alternative and increased transit funding sources, new ways to incentivize transit use, and better transit funding delivery systems.

8. Proactively position public transit as a bi-partisan policy priority deserving continued state support. improve the way legislators, administration officials, other state decision-makers, and the California public perceive the Association and public transit. develop messaging products and resources for advocates, members and allies, sort efforts and products by audience, and support with strong analysis and research, including:

• a proactive media relations campaign;

• a media response capacity;

• a communications program that includes two components:

• external (media relations; marketing; message collateral supporting advocacy; etc.)

• internal (enhanced web and member communications; re-branding the Association; local tool kits for members; etc.)

• a strong “transit does work” message aimed at two target audiences:

• research and message development that flows into general audience “pro-transit” products or collateral; and

• research and message development that flows into specific products or collateral related to individual high-priority bills, regulations and budget or policy developments, targeted at officials making decisions on the specific priorities.

9. Build stronger partnerships with influential groups that do or should care about preserving and growing public transit funding and enhancing public transit service (i.e. bus interests, rail interests, and partners such as labor, environmental, business or public health advocates), and mobilize particular groups when appropriate (e.g. in support of a pro-transit bill, or against a proposed transit funding cut), including:

• launching a roundtable group of transit-related businesses and the larger employer community to support public transit

• leading a coalition to secure funding needed to comply with the California global warming Solutions Act (AB 32) and the state’s transportation-housing-land use connection requirements (e.g. SB 375)

10. Increase opportunities for transit to influence local planning efforts (i.e. land use and development decisions) through the state legislative and regulatory process.

Strategic goal 1

aDvocacy

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STRATEGIC PLAN 7

Provide members timely information and services to enhance the strengths and effectiveness of their organizations.

memBeR SeRviCeS

STRATEGIC GoAL 2

objectives

A. outcoMe

Challenges and opportunities that affect members are identified.

inDicatorS

1. needs assessments and analyses are completed.

2. Appropriate experts are brought together.

3. information is distributed.

4. Action results are affected.

B. outcoMe

Cost-effective opportunities for member and individual peer-to-peer exchange, networking, information dissemination and substantive education are provided.

inDicatorS

1. well-planned and executed annual Transit lobby day, Spring legislative Conference, Fall Conference & expo, and various informational webinars.

2. Attendance at all events remains stable or grows year-over-year.

3. manage costs in execution of conferences through development and implementation of a balanced budget.

4. Attendee evaluation forms indicate stable or growing satisfaction levels year-over-year.

5. Current communication mediums are analyzed and recommended improvements are implemented.

C. outcoMe

efforts to increase ridership by members are supported.

inDicatorS

1. Collateral is produced, and information is disseminated, including at events, focused on increasing ridership.

2. Online forums and resources are provided for sharing challenges to, and best practices and solutions for increasing ridership, including development of innovative and lower-cost transit business models..

Strategic goal 2

MeMber ServiceS

8 CAliFORniA TRAnSiT ASSOCiATiOn

Menu of Tactics1. Monitor policy and operational trends in transit, including communications from member organizations and

legislative or regulatory developments, assign important new or evolving issues to standing committees (or appoint task forces as necessary) for analysis and development of recommendations, take positions as appropriate, and disseminate analysis and information to members as it becomes available and mobilize members as needed.

2. Develop pertinent and customized information and improve tailored dissemination to members (i.e. differentiating between bus-policy analysis and members vs. rail-policy analysis and members, urban vs. rural, small vs. large, etc.).

3. Offer peer-to-peer exchange, networking and substantive education opportunities, including high quality webinars and conferences, focused on mid-level and upper-level managers and technical staff, and transit agency governing board members, where common problems can be shared and solutions developed and disseminated.

4. Provide enhanced or additional opportunities for Business members to connect with public agency members and showcase their innovative products and services.

5. develop and offer distance learning opportunities to educate and train personnel at all levels of public transit organizations.

6. encourage greater attendance at events by making them more easily accessible and affordable, and by improving marketing of registration for such events.

7. Develop and maintain partnerships with grant-making and other fund-providing agencies and organizations, and facilitate member access to such funds.

8. Provide opportunities for small organizations to learn from the large organizations, and the large to learn from the small, including through the development and dissemination of:

• best practices

• online forums

• a reference library

• match making

• comparative analysis

• technology solutions

• a clearinghouse of and links to existing research, messaging and training opportunities

9. develop new communication mediums, including webinars, listservs, password protected blogs, and other social media, and migrate processes to utilize new technology and take advantage of new communication mediums where possible, such as online membership directories, online event registration, online committee work programs, etc.

Strategic goal 2

MeMber ServiceS

STRATEGIC PLAN 9

Increase the Association’s ability to achieve its goals by aligning financial resources, staff expertise, work program, member

participation, and governance process.

10 CAliFORniA TRAnSiT ASSOCiATiOn

ORgAnizATiOnAl mAnAgemenT & develOPmenT

STRATEGIC GoAL 3

objectivesA outcoMe

Stable overall membership.

inDicatorS

1. Annually achieve a stable membership base compared to the previous year.

2. Attract members from all segments of the industry.

B. outcoMe

increased member satisfaction.

inDicatorS

1. Increased utilization of Association products and services.

2. Annual survey is conducted, results showing positive improvements in all advocacy, member service, and organizational management areas.

C. outcoMe

Contracted staff and vendors are skilled and experienced to meet the organization’s needs.

inDicatorS

1. Performance evaluation of management firm occurs annually.

2. Process is in place to ensure knowledge transfer between existing and any new contracted staff.

3. Strengthened leadership and skills in information technology.

D. outcoMe

increased use of new and innovative technology by Association to enhance communication and improve analysis capabilities.

inDicator

1. improved information sharing and analysis capabilities.

E. outcoMe

increased inclusiveness and participation of Association’s diverse membership in conferences, committees, policy development, and organizational leadership.

inDicatorS

1. All members are encouraged to participate and opportunities are provided.

2. Committee appointment and decision-making processes are clarified.

3. Review of committee rosters and chairs occurs formally every two years.

Strategic goal 3

organizational ManageMent & DevelopMent

STRATEGIC PLAN 11

F. outcoMe

Continued financial stability and accountability.

inDicatorS

1. Balanced annual operating budget and year-end reconciliation.

2. Adherence to financial policies.

3. Unqualified annual audit opinion.

4. dues revenue annually meets or exceeds previous year.

G. outcoMe

enhanced public awareness of transit and its daily positive impact on the lives of all Californians.

inDicator

1. Available polling data indicates increased public support for transit compared to previous year.

Menu of Tactics1. develop and submit to the executive Committee annually a staff and committee work program designed to achieve

the objectives of the Strategic Plan as much as possible given current resources and effort, based on the tactics listed in the plan, concurrent with a budget and forecast based on available resources and current effort, and identifying additional resources and / or effort required to achieve more of the Strategic Plan’s objectives.

2. Continually review and adjust as necessary the Association’s organizational and governance structure and resource allocation to ensure accomplishment of the advocacy and member services strategic goals.

3. Approach the business of the Association methodically and deliberately, using internal quality control measures and effective management techniques, and ensuring adequate contracted staff capacities to meet Association needs.

4. Conduct annual member satisfaction surveys.

5. Conduct annual management firm performance evaluations.

6. ensure committees or task forces of members serve as advisors on development of conference programs and other member services, to ensure offerings are timely and provide usable information and services, and that they would retain existing and attract new members.

7. increase number of new members through the development of targeted campaigns to identify and recruit viable prospect candidates.

8. Provide affordable and relevant conferences, by emphasizing investment in quality speakers and presentations, increasing value for participating Business Members, exhibitors and sponsors, while obtaining a net profit.

9. Promote conferences, committee activities, products, services, and leadership opportunities, to increase participation of the Association’s diverse membership.

10. Offer new products and services to better serve our members.

11. Strengthen leadership in information technology functions. improve the membership database to better track member needs and activities; and attain higher levels of web site functionality to better serve member needs.

12. look for opportunities to generate additional revenue consistent with adopted policy.

13. Identify and utilize Web-based technologies for webinars, listservs, blogs, committee work, e-learning, and other member support services.

14. develop a proactive, positive media relations campaign, to support the media and message development tactics in goal number 1, Advocacy.

Strategic goal 3

organizational ManageMent & DevelopMent

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STRATEGIC PLAN 13

implementation of the Strategic Plan and TimelineThe California Transit Association actively uses the Strategic Plan to guide its activities and assess its performance. This includes the efforts of the Association’s leadership, staff, and committees; the ways time, money and other resources are programmed; the considerations that go into decision making; and how progress and results are tracked and reported to the Association’s leaders and the membership at large.

As our tactical implementation of the Strategic Plan, staff prepares an annual Work Program, which contains specific activi-ties by which each of the strategic goals will be implemented in a given year, including performance measures. Staff also prepares an annual Budget and Forecast, which detail how revenues match expenditures to support the strategic goals and produce the results called for in the work Program. The work Program and Budget are submitted to the executive Committee each november for adoption and implementation in each upcoming calendar year.

Progress reports are made regularly at meetings of the Association’s executive Committee and to the full membership via publications and the web site.

The Strategic Plan is occasionally revised and fine-tuned during its five-year life to respond to changing conditions that impact the organization and to keep the plan relevant in guiding the California Transit Association to fulfill its mission and best serve its members.

Process for Periodic Review and updateThis Strategic Plan is a “living” document, and shall be used continually to guide staff and executive Committee actions, not only over the five-year horizon of the document, but within each year itself. As such, the Executive Committee is committed to a formal, annual assessment of the plan’s goals, objectives and tactics, informed in part by yearly membership satisfaction surveys, and will make changes from year-to-year as necessary to ensure that the California Transit Association is meeting the needs of its members going forward.

The annual review takes place by each July to inform staff ’s development of the annual work Program and Budget, submitted to the executive Committee each november.

in addition to these annual reviews, the executive Committee will also conduct a comprehensive analysis and update of the whole Strategic Plan once every five years. This assessment would take into account, amongst other factors, fundamental shifts in the needs of the public transit industry, as well as any major changes in the political or economic environment in which the California Transit Association and its members operate.

Thus, the membership should expect to see annual updates to this plan, and to participate in a major reassessment every five years.

Beyond the Planin this second iteration of the California Transit Association’s Strategic Plan, care has been taken to list objectives and outcomes that push us towards improvement, but that are simultaneously realistic, given current resources. This section of the Plan contains a list of objectives and tactics that were removed from the 2005 to 2010 version of the Plan, given resource constraints and new strategic challenges, but which should remain as options for reincorporation should additional resources materialize. In that sense, these remain “Reach” objectives, indicators and tactics.

Strategic Goal 1– Advocacy“REACh” TACTICS

• develop a message and tool-kit to assist local agencies in branding public transportation to make it part of a positive public policy “big idea,” and in promoting it to the influential groups that can impact funding, land-use and related decisions.

• Compile a database of individual supporters of public transit and educate and mobilize them as appropriate and when needed; for instance, by working with member agencies to activate their riders and local community groups.

• Develop a program or options in which private sector financial resources are provided to candidates for state office on behalf of transit, such as a political action committee or informal fund-raising events, for review and action by the executive Committee.

• develop a program for increasing California transit’s advocacy effectiveness at the Federal level, for subsequent review and action by the executive Committee.

Strategic Goal 2 – Member Servicesno items were moved to supplemental designation.

Strategic Goal 3 – organizational Management and Development“REACh” oBjECTIVES / INDICAToRS

obJectiveS increased overall membership.

inDicatorS • Annually achieve a net increase in new members over the previous year.

• Attract members from all segments of the industry.

obJectiveS members in every legislative district in the state join the Association.

inDicator • At least one member in every state legislative and congressional district.

“REACh” TACTICS

• Recruit members in every congressional and state legislative district in the state.

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Towards a new Plan

in January, 2011, a group comprised of executive Committee members and Association Standing Committee Chairs began the process of developing the Strategic Plan for 2012 to 2016 by first identifying the Association’s accomplishments under the previous five-year plan. The group then identified the strategic challenges the Association and its members are expected to face in the next five years. Participants then prioritized the list of challenges, which produced a clear “top 5” list of elements seen as most important to address in a new plan.

Staff was then directed to draft an initial strategic plan for 2012 to 2016, based on these prioritized challenges, other feedback provided during the session and throughout the prior year, and staff ’s view of how to best conform the current plan’s structure and content to our new world. A task force of executive Committee members then met with staff to review staff ’s draft strategic plan.

The task force edited staff ’s product and presented that for executive Committee consideration at the march meeting; that draft was adopted in concept, and then submitted to the entire membership for review and comment. An extensive review and comment period, “advertised” regularly in our weekly executive director’s Report and on our web site, allowed both members and non-member stakeholders to provide feedback on the draft.

Following the review and comment period, the task force reconvened and submitted its finalized proposed new Strategic Plan for 2012 to 2016 to the executive Committee. The executive Committee approved the document at its July meeting.

STRATEGIC PLAN 15

AcknowledgementsExECuTIVE CoMMITTEE

Chair Doran Barnes, Foothill Transit

Vice Chair Paul jablonski, San diego metropolitan Transit System

Charles Anderson, western Contra Costa Transit AuthorityMona Babauta, Fairfield and Suisun Transitjennifer Barton, San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit districtMichael T. Burns, Santa Clara valley Transportation AuthorityDonna DeMartino, San Joaquin Regional Transit districtBeverly Greene, Alameda Contra Costa Transit districtDebra johnson, San Francisco municipal Transportation AgencyKevin Kane, victor valley Transit AuthorityWill Kempton, Orange County Transportation AuthorityBrynn Kernaghan, long Beach TransitKaren King, golden empire Transit districtjeanne Krieg, eastern Contra Costa Transit AuthorityDavid B. Kutrosky, Capitol Corridor Joint Powers AuthorityArthur Leahy, los Angeles County metropolitan Transportation AuthorityRebecca Long, metropolitan Transportation CommissionTeri Mantony, golden gate Bridge, highway and Transportation districtjim Mastin, mendocino Transit AuthoritySeamus Murphy, San mateo County Transit districtPam o’Connor, Santa monica’s Big Blue Busjoe Policarpio, gillig llCCarl Sedoryk, monterey-Salinas TransitKam Shadan, gannett Fleming, inc.Michael R. Wiley, Sacramento Regional Transit district

STRATEGIC PLAN TASK FoRCE

Chair Michael R. Wiley, Sacramento Regional Transit district

Beverly Greene, Alameda Contra Costa Transit districtKaren King, golden empire Transit districtjim Mastin, mendocino Transit Authorityjoe Policarpio, gillig, llC

ASSoCIATIoN STAFF

joshua W. Shaw, executive directorRob Finley, deputy executive directorGus Khouri, legislative AdvocateAmy Lai, Association Services directorjeff Wagner, Communications directorSabrina Means, legislative and Regulatory AdvocateTeresa Evans, Association Services Assistant

16 CAliFORniA TRAnSiT ASSOCiATiOn

CALIfORNIA TRANSIT ASSOCIATION

www.caltransit.org P. (916) 446-4 F. (916) 446-4318